Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Literally the Best Reviews: Life in New York

Life in New York -- Laura Pedersen

Fulcrum Publishing

202 Pages

This evening, author Laura Pedersen will be at the Lockport Public Library to discuss her new memoir, Life in New York. The free event will take place in the library’s Community Meeting Room 6:30-7:30. Pedersen is a humorist, author, and playwright, with much of her influence drawn from her formative years in Western New York. With this latest output, she regales the reader with stories about her life after she moved to the Big Apple.

When you first start reading Life in New York, the first impression is, “Why would anyone want to live in New York City?” The scenes of riding on the subway and its hidden and overt dangers could deter even the most stalwart traveler from visiting that mode of transportation. Combine the status of housing in the City, and it’s a wonder that anyone actually lives there.

However, as the story of her life in New York evolves, so does the city. The real gem of New York City is slowly emerging from beneath the dirt and grime of centuries of misuse and misplaced love. Pedersen lived through the changes in the city, documenting those changes through her amiable and humorous anecdotes.

At the beginning of the book, New York City seems like a place that is best avoided. Slowly, we come to a city transformed by the beginning of the twenty-first century. It’s no longer a place to be avoided and Laura Pedersen has written her own style of travel guide for New York City. It’s well worth a read before making that trip to see the big sights in the big city.

Many of you have probably read Laura Pedersen’s earlier works about Western New York, Buffalo Gal and Buffalo Unbound. Those books were extraordinary because of so many familiar settings. With Life in New York, we may not readily recognize quite as many places, but one of our hometown writers gives us an inside glimpse into her adopted home.

If you’re looking to spend some time listening to more wonderful stories about New York, then stop into the library’s Community Room at 6:30. Laura Pedersen will recount some interesting stories about the bright and not so bright lights of Gotham. It is truly incredible the programs our Lockport LIbrary puts on. I wouldn’t miss. It. See you there.

Next Week: This Was Not the Plan -- Christina Alger

Craig Bacon once went to New York City once when he was 15. He didn’t ride the subway, but he did pour some Lake Erie water into the East River.